First time I saw him was in 2007 (my last year living in the Niagara region; Bulldogs games were a treat, being a Habs fan), when I caught a few games in Hamilton during the Calder Cup. He took the team on a helluva run.

JayByrd wrote:Another player who deserves to be in the conversation is Dominik Hasek. Hasek only ever posted one losing NHL season. Won two Stanley Cups, multiple league championships in Europe, Olympic Gold medal, etc etc. He was a quirky guy who would disappear for long stretches due to seemingly-random injuries (sooperphreek will appreciate that). Part of his success was his unorthodox style...he would do things to stop the puck no one else was doing. Rolling onto his back to make a save on a deking shooter. Dropping his stick on a goalmouth scramble, and grabbing loose pucks with his blocker. Some of those elements have been adapted by others, but there's still never been anyone like him.

Hasek's final NHL season (with the Detroit Red Wings) read like this: 27W-10L-3T, 5 SO, 2.14 GAA, .902sv%. This was at age 42.

he was -- ALOT-- of fun to watch play,does anyone even play his style anymore ,I think not ,to bad

"The further a society drifts from truth the more it will hate those who speak it." -George Orwell

GordonH wrote:He was an entertaining goaltender to watch, as the game has continued speed up I'm not sure how well his style would do today.

Agreed. Of course, if he played today, he'd also have the opportunity to adjust. Really, Hasek's flopping, rubber-bodied style forced shooters to raise the puck and make a perfect shot to beat him. The butterfly (which isn't a "style" anymore but is still used) does the same thing, they just take two very different routes to get there.

In some ways, I miss the varied styles of goaltending we saw up until the 2000's. Guys like Kirk McLean who stayed on their feet as much as possible, or undersized acrobats like Mike Vernon and Grant Fuhr, to the classic butterfly goalies like Patrick Roy and Felix Potvin. Now, there are some variances in technique, but they're not nearly as noticeable unless you're a goalie coach. Everyone basically plays the same way. It's necessary to succeed in hockey today but it's less fun I think.

God forbid you ever had to walk a mile in his shoes'cause then you really might know what it's like to sing the blues.